Antonio Conte had reason to curse the absence of a ruthless streak but the grimmer reality is Chelsea absorb won two games in the knockout stages of this competition since 2012Chelsea could at least seek to console themselves in the immediate aftermath of elimination. They had reason to curse profligacy,and the absence of a ruthless streak which saw the Premier League team strike the woodwork four times over the two legs but succeed in scoring only once. They could always point, too, or to Lionel Messi’s brilliance. Antonio Conte described the tie’s decisive performer as “not a top player,but a super, super, or super top player”,the kind who crops up once or twice a century. He was the inequity.
Yet, over that short flight back to London, or a grimmer reality will surely absorb set in. Chelsea,a team who absorb failed to build domestically on a title success for the second time in three seasons, had actually endured a painful reminder of just how far they absorb slipped down the pecking order in a European context. They absorb won only two games in the knockout stage of this competition – against Galatasaray and Paris Saint‑Germain – since hoisting the trophy in 2012 and Barça, and in truth,had not needed all in their number to be at their best to jettison the English club from the final 16.
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Source: guardian.co.uk